University of Tennessee Athletics
NO. 10 TENNESSEE MEETS MISSISSIPPI STATE TO BEGIN SEC TOURNAMENT
May 12, 2004 | Softball
May 12, 2004
Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - Having earned the second seed for the 2004 Southeastern Conference Tournament after winning the Eastern Division, the 10th-ranked Lady Vols (51-12) will open the double-elimination event against seventh-seeded Mississippi State (37-22) on Thursday at 11 a.m. CT in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Tennessee is riding a five-game winning streak into its second consecutive postseason appearance under Co-Head Coaches Ralph and Karen Weekly, while the Bulldogs have taken their last nine decisions, including a doubleheader sweep of No. 22 Georgia Tech last weekend. Seven of the eight participants in the league's eighth annual event are among the top 25 nationally.
"Every team in this tournament will be very tough," acknowledged Ralph Weekly. "We will play the hottest team in the league, as Mississippi State has won 15 of its last 17 games and boasts the conference's top offensive player in All-American and USA Softball Player of the Year finalist Iyhia McMichael. Defeating any team four straight times in one year is difficult and beating the Bulldogs will be a tremendous challenge for our kids because MSU is well coached by Jay Miller and possesses a potent lineup."
Following a 10-day layoff, the Lady Vols closed out their action at Tyson Park by shutting out Appalachian State in both ends of a twinbill on Tuesday, 5-0 and 8-0 (5). UT's pitching staff, comprised of freshman Monica Abbott (Salinas, Calif.) and sophomore Stacey Jennings (Aurora, Colo.), has notched 30 shutouts this spring and has compiled an earned run average of 1.24. Among the leaders in virtually every pitching category in the SEC, Abbott (42-6, 0.74 ERA) has totaled 535 strikeouts and held opponents to a .128 batting average. Jennings (9-6, 2.29 ERA) starts in right field when she is not in the circle and has contributed a .268 batting average with 16 RBI and 15 runs.
With a .352 average, senior Lauren Mattox (Charlotte, N.C.) leads five Tennessee players above the .300 plateau. UT's starter behind the plate has driven in 29 runs, drawn 18 walks and poked 13 doubles. Having finished third in the conference with a .425 performance during her 28 league games, sophomore Kristi Durant (Placentia, Calif.) is hitting .344 overall with 33 RBI, 17 runs and 11 two-baggers. Freshman Lindsay Schutzler (Monterey, Calif.) had four hits against ASU to raise her average to .330 and has 14 stolen bases to go along with 36 runs.
Sophomore Sarah Fekete (Maryville, Tenn.) is the team's leader on the basepaths with 37 runs and has 18 thefts in 21 chances. She boosted her season ledger to .314 by going 5-for-7 with three runs and three stolen bases in the blankings of the Mountaineers. Senior Angela Brewer (East Ridge, Tenn.) belted a pair of dingers on Tuesday, giving her seven on the campaign, and is batting .277 with 41 RBI and 22 runs. Despite being mired in a slump that has lowered her clip to .276, senior Amber Rhinehart (Citrus Heights, Calif.) remains the Lady Vols' leader in RBI (46) and homers (10). Senior center fielder McMichael again paces State's offense in a hodge-podge of offensive categories: batting average
(.482), slugging percentage (.863), on-base percentage (.599), total bases (145), stolen bases (39), doubles (16), home runs (10), triples (nine) and doubles (six). Senior left fielder Kate Jaspers is hitting .394 and has driven in 45 runs, senior first baseman Jennifer Waterman (.333) is first on the club with 54 RBI and senior right fielder Meagan O'Nan (.360) has 36 runs and 10 thefts. Senior catcher Blaire Brown (.280) has 35 runs batted in, five homers, three triples and five doubles. Rookie Hayle Guess (.243) is a perfect 13-for-13 on stolen base opportunities.
In the circle, junior righty Melissa Massey is 17-8 with a 2.44 earned run average and has 109 strikeouts in 166.2 innings. Rookie righty Kelli Miller, the most recent SEC Pitcher of the Week, is 10-8 with a 1.99 ERA and has registered 56 Ks in 112.1 frames. Freshman righty Stephanie Comeaux is 9-6 with a 2.06 ERA over 78.1 innings of action.
The Orange bounced back from its problems against seventh-ranked Alabama to sweep Mississippi State on March 20-21 in Starkville, 10-1, 6-3 and 5-3 (8). It was the first time that UT had ever taken every outing from the Maroons, who advanced to NCAA Regionals last May. During the series, the Lady Vol offense erupted for 37 hits, 21 runs and a .381 batting average.
Durant powered the attack with 10 RBI, including six in the second game of the series, and finished with a .545 (6-for-11) showing. Mattox was 3-for-6 and the tandem of Brewer and sophomore Katherine Card (Soddy Daisy, Tenn.) checked in at .455 (5-for-11). In the circle, Abbott was a perfect 3-0 with a 1.05 ERA and notched 24 strikeouts in 20 innings.
Tennessee will be making its fifth appearance at SECs, having gone 5-8 (.385) in its four previous visits. The Orange went 2-2 at the event last May, including four extra-inning affairs, and ousted Auburn and Georgia before falling to eventual champion Alabama. State earned its seventh trip to the conference event and has a 9-12 (.429) record. The Bulldogs reached the championship game in 1998, but fell to Alabama in nine innings, 5-4.
After winning five of the first seven games between the teams, UT dropped six of the next seven meetings for an 8-6 deficit in the series. However, the Lady Vols have won five of the last six outings to seize an 11-9 lead. UT is 5-5 against the Bulldogs in Knoxville, 5-4 in Starkville and is 1-0 at a neutral site (the 1998 SEC Tournament in Columbus, Ga.).
2004 SEC Softball Tournament
Thursday, May 13Game 1 #2 TENNESSEE vs. #7 Mississippi State 11 a.m. CTGame 2 #3 Georgia vs. #6 Florida 1:30 p.m. CTGame 3 #1 LSU vs. #8 South Carolina 5 p.m. CTGame 4 #4 Auburn vs. #5 Alabama 7:30 p.m. CT
Friday, May 14Game 5 Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2 11 a.m. CTGame 6 Loser Game 3 vs. Loser Game 4 1:30 p.m. CTGame 7 Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2 5 p.m. CTGame 8 Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 4 7:30 p.m. CT
Saturday, May 15Game 9 Winner Game 5 vs. Loser Game 8 11 a.m. CTGame 10 Winner Game 6 vs. Loser Game 7 1:30 p.m. CTGame 11 Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 9 5 p.m. CTGame 12 Winner Game 8 vs. Winner Game 10 7:30 p.m. CT
Sunday, May 16Game 13 Necessary if Winner Game 9 wins Game 11 9 a.m. CTGame 14 Necessary if Winner Game 10 wins Game 12 9 a.m. CTGame 15 Two Semifinal Winners 1 p.m. CT (SEC-TV)
